Brittney L. Goscicki, K. Sanderson, R. Urbano, R. Hodapp
BACKGROUND: Although parents and transition-aged students are critical stakeholders in Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings, little is known about the extent to which both groups contribute during such meetings. OBJECTIVE: We examined the nature and extent of parent and student IEP meeting participation, similarities and differences in participation, and associated predictors for each group. METHODS: Responding to a national, web-based survey, 240 parents of transition-aged students (14– 21 years) completed a questionnaire related to their experiences at their child’s most recent IEP meeting. RESULTS: For both parents and students, participation items grouped into school- and transition-related input. Overall, parents participated more than students and both parties contributed more toward school-related versus transition-related topics. Predictors of parent involvement included sharing input about the student before the IEP meeting and reviewing data on the student’s past performance during the IEP meeting. Student involvement was predicted by students actively leading their meeting. CONCLUSION: We offer recommendations for research and practice for facilitating parents and transition-aged students to actively participate in IEP meetings.
{"title":"Parent and student participation in IEP meetings: Transition-aged students still overlooked","authors":"Brittney L. Goscicki, K. Sanderson, R. Urbano, R. Hodapp","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230030","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230030","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: Although parents and transition-aged students are critical stakeholders in Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings, little is known about the extent to which both groups contribute during such meetings. OBJECTIVE: We examined the nature and extent of parent and student IEP meeting participation, similarities and differences in participation, and associated predictors for each group. METHODS: Responding to a national, web-based survey, 240 parents of transition-aged students (14– 21 years) completed a questionnaire related to their experiences at their child’s most recent IEP meeting. RESULTS: For both parents and students, participation items grouped into school- and transition-related input. Overall, parents participated more than students and both parties contributed more toward school-related versus transition-related topics. Predictors of parent involvement included sharing input about the student before the IEP meeting and reviewing data on the student’s past performance during the IEP meeting. Student involvement was predicted by students actively leading their meeting. CONCLUSION: We offer recommendations for research and practice for facilitating parents and transition-aged students to actively participate in IEP meetings.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87081162","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tim Riesen, Beth Keeton, Rachel N. Byers, Aubrey Snyder
BACKGROUND: The Rehabilitation Act references self-employment in its definition of competitive integrated employment (CIE) and description of vocational outcomes. The Act also references self-employment within its scope of services and stipulates that rehabilitation services include “technical assistance and other consultation services to conduct market analyses, develop business plans, and otherwise provide resources, to the extent those resources are authorized to be provided through the statewide workforce development system, to eligible individuals who are pursuing self-employment or telecommuting or establishing a small business operation as an employment outcome” 34 CFR 361.48(b)(19). OBJECTIVE: This policy review identifies and highlights specific SVRA policy regarding TA and consultation for self-employment. METHODS: Policies from all 50 states and the District of Columbia’s combined or general SVRAs and policies from 18 blind SVRAs were reviewed and coded into categories (no reference, generic, internal, and external references) to determine the types of TA and consultation for self-employment that are outlined in state policy. RESULTS: The majority of general or combined SVRAs (n = 38) have policies for self-employment technical assistance and consultation that are generic and the majority of blind SVRAs (n = 16) have generic policies for self-employment technical assistance and consultation. These rehabilitation agencies’ policies only reference generic services and do not identify dedicated resources designed to meet the intent and scope of rehabilitation services. CONCLUSION: SVRAs must make a concerted effort to ensure that self-employment policy is adequately aligned to account for necessary supports, activities, and interventions that lead to positive self-employment outcomes.
{"title":"An examination of vocational rehabilitation requirements for self-employment technical assistance and consultative services","authors":"Tim Riesen, Beth Keeton, Rachel N. Byers, Aubrey Snyder","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230029","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230029","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: The Rehabilitation Act references self-employment in its definition of competitive integrated employment (CIE) and description of vocational outcomes. The Act also references self-employment within its scope of services and stipulates that rehabilitation services include “technical assistance and other consultation services to conduct market analyses, develop business plans, and otherwise provide resources, to the extent those resources are authorized to be provided through the statewide workforce development system, to eligible individuals who are pursuing self-employment or telecommuting or establishing a small business operation as an employment outcome” 34 CFR 361.48(b)(19). OBJECTIVE: This policy review identifies and highlights specific SVRA policy regarding TA and consultation for self-employment. METHODS: Policies from all 50 states and the District of Columbia’s combined or general SVRAs and policies from 18 blind SVRAs were reviewed and coded into categories (no reference, generic, internal, and external references) to determine the types of TA and consultation for self-employment that are outlined in state policy. RESULTS: The majority of general or combined SVRAs (n = 38) have policies for self-employment technical assistance and consultation that are generic and the majority of blind SVRAs (n = 16) have generic policies for self-employment technical assistance and consultation. These rehabilitation agencies’ policies only reference generic services and do not identify dedicated resources designed to meet the intent and scope of rehabilitation services. CONCLUSION: SVRAs must make a concerted effort to ensure that self-employment policy is adequately aligned to account for necessary supports, activities, and interventions that lead to positive self-employment outcomes.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73201649","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
W. G. Revell, Katherine J. Inge, R. Cimera, Beth Keeton, Emily A. Brinck
BACKGROUND: Self-employment continues to be an elusive competitive integrated employment outcome (CIE) for people with disabilities receiving services from State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies (SVRA). This article provides a snapshot of the extent to which self-employment is occurring within the SVRA program as a CIE outcome. Recommendations are included for VR policies and practices that may expand the self-employment participation and outcomes for an inclusive range of VR recipients. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to provide an analysis of the national outcomes in self-employment for individuals served by the SVRAs for program years 2018, 2019, and 2020. METHODS: The data in this article was provided by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) as part of the RSA Case Service Report (RSA-911) for 2018, 2019, and 2020. RESULTS: Self-employment continues to be an underutilized VR service. Outcomes in self-employment as a percentage of all VR outcomes in CIE remained low and stagnant during 2018 and 2019 with a noticeable drop in outcomes for PY 2020. Consistently, self-employment outcomes are predominantly achieved in the VR system by a homogenous population of older (age 50+) participants whose race is white and gender is male. CONCLUSION: Unless the field of vocational rehabilitation proactively commits to diversifying and expanding self-employment participation and outcomes, the odds are that the outcomes for self-employment will remain unchanged.
{"title":"A summary of the self-employment outcomes in the State Vocational Rehabilitation Services Program: Program years 2018, 2019, and 2020","authors":"W. G. Revell, Katherine J. Inge, R. Cimera, Beth Keeton, Emily A. Brinck","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230026","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230026","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: Self-employment continues to be an elusive competitive integrated employment outcome (CIE) for people with disabilities receiving services from State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies (SVRA). This article provides a snapshot of the extent to which self-employment is occurring within the SVRA program as a CIE outcome. Recommendations are included for VR policies and practices that may expand the self-employment participation and outcomes for an inclusive range of VR recipients. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to provide an analysis of the national outcomes in self-employment for individuals served by the SVRAs for program years 2018, 2019, and 2020. METHODS: The data in this article was provided by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) as part of the RSA Case Service Report (RSA-911) for 2018, 2019, and 2020. RESULTS: Self-employment continues to be an underutilized VR service. Outcomes in self-employment as a percentage of all VR outcomes in CIE remained low and stagnant during 2018 and 2019 with a noticeable drop in outcomes for PY 2020. Consistently, self-employment outcomes are predominantly achieved in the VR system by a homogenous population of older (age 50+) participants whose race is white and gender is male. CONCLUSION: Unless the field of vocational rehabilitation proactively commits to diversifying and expanding self-employment participation and outcomes, the odds are that the outcomes for self-employment will remain unchanged.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"66 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80101399","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lauren Avellone, Emily Malouf, Joshua P. Taylor, Holly N. Whittenburg
BACKGROUND: Self-employment is a flexible alternative to traditional workforce positions. Individuals with disabilities are self-employed at higher rates than individuals without disabilities, mainly because self-employment circumnavigates many of the commonly experienced barriers individuals with disabilities face when pursuing more typical employment situations. Still, little is known about factors that impact successful self-employment outcomes. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to identify factors that facilitate or hinder self-employment outcomes for individuals with cognitive and physical disabilities. METHOD: A scoping review of the empirical literature was conducted to examine individual/system level, programmatic, and key themes within lived experiences that affect self-employment outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 40 articles were included in the final sample representing both national and international research efforts. Findings indicated that a multitude of factors affect self-employment outcomes including demographics (e.g., gender, race, age, disability), social network, financial standing and work history, personal motivation, interagency collaboration, services provided (e.g., business plan development and mentorship), and barriers (e.g., lack of training and services). CONCLUSION: There are a number of known variables that promote self-employment outcomes. Implications for future research, policy and practice are discussed.
{"title":"An international scoping review of factors impacting self-employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities","authors":"Lauren Avellone, Emily Malouf, Joshua P. Taylor, Holly N. Whittenburg","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230024","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230024","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: Self-employment is a flexible alternative to traditional workforce positions. Individuals with disabilities are self-employed at higher rates than individuals without disabilities, mainly because self-employment circumnavigates many of the commonly experienced barriers individuals with disabilities face when pursuing more typical employment situations. Still, little is known about factors that impact successful self-employment outcomes. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to identify factors that facilitate or hinder self-employment outcomes for individuals with cognitive and physical disabilities. METHOD: A scoping review of the empirical literature was conducted to examine individual/system level, programmatic, and key themes within lived experiences that affect self-employment outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 40 articles were included in the final sample representing both national and international research efforts. Findings indicated that a multitude of factors affect self-employment outcomes including demographics (e.g., gender, race, age, disability), social network, financial standing and work history, personal motivation, interagency collaboration, services provided (e.g., business plan development and mentorship), and barriers (e.g., lack of training and services). CONCLUSION: There are a number of known variables that promote self-employment outcomes. Implications for future research, policy and practice are discussed.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"136 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79596657","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"An introduction to this special issue of the Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation: Self-employment","authors":"Katherine J. Inge, Beth Keeton","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230023","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230023","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"256 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76121295","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tim Riesen, Molly Sullivan, Aubrey Snyder, Beth Keeton
BACKGROUND: While self-employment is a viable and beneficial employment strategy for people with disabilities, there seems to be considerable variation in how state rehabilitation agencies support self-employment. Because of this variation, research is needed to identify the critical elements for facilitating self-employment. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to gather information from vocational rehabilitation counselors about what they believe are the knowledge and skills essential to facilitating self-employment and the barriers to business ownership throughout key phases of the vocational rehabilitation process, including (a) application and intake, (b) plan development and service delivery, and (c) employment and closure. METHODS: A Delphi method with three iterations was used to identify information from VRCs and managers about what they believe are the knowledge, skills, and barriers when facilitating self-employment and business ownership during the vocational rehabilitation process. RESULTS: Respondents rated 15 knowledge and skill items for the application and intake domain, 19 knowledge and skill items in the plan development and service delivery domain, and 12 knowledge and skill items in the employment and closure domain. Respondents also rated three barriers for application and intake, six plan development and service delivery barriers, and three barriers were rated in employment and closure. CONCLUSION: The VRCs identified a wide range of knowledge and skills and barriers across each area of the rehabilitation process. More research should be conducted to further operationalize the skills and proficiencies for self-employment.
{"title":"Identifying the knowledge, skills, and barriers for self-employment","authors":"Tim Riesen, Molly Sullivan, Aubrey Snyder, Beth Keeton","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230028","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230028","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: While self-employment is a viable and beneficial employment strategy for people with disabilities, there seems to be considerable variation in how state rehabilitation agencies support self-employment. Because of this variation, research is needed to identify the critical elements for facilitating self-employment. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to gather information from vocational rehabilitation counselors about what they believe are the knowledge and skills essential to facilitating self-employment and the barriers to business ownership throughout key phases of the vocational rehabilitation process, including (a) application and intake, (b) plan development and service delivery, and (c) employment and closure. METHODS: A Delphi method with three iterations was used to identify information from VRCs and managers about what they believe are the knowledge, skills, and barriers when facilitating self-employment and business ownership during the vocational rehabilitation process. RESULTS: Respondents rated 15 knowledge and skill items for the application and intake domain, 19 knowledge and skill items in the plan development and service delivery domain, and 12 knowledge and skill items in the employment and closure domain. Respondents also rated three barriers for application and intake, six plan development and service delivery barriers, and three barriers were rated in employment and closure. CONCLUSION: The VRCs identified a wide range of knowledge and skills and barriers across each area of the rehabilitation process. More research should be conducted to further operationalize the skills and proficiencies for self-employment.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"27 15 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80185430","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Supported employment and customized employment: How effective are these interventions and what has been their impact on the field?","authors":"P. Wehman","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230022","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230022","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"63 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-04-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83643040","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lisa Ottomanelli, T. Smith, B. Cotner, Peter A. Toyinbo, Hari H Venkatachalam, S. McDonald, L. Goetz, Julie Cessna-Palas, S. Mendelson, Christina Dillahunt-Aspillaga, Areana Cruz, Liron S McCauley, Bradford S Pierce
BACKGROUND: To date, the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model is the only vocational intervention that has been rigorously studied and shown to be effective with Veterans with spinal cord injury (SCI). Customized Employment (CE) is an innovative vocational intervention with promising results among people with disabilities which has yet to be tested in persons with SCI. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether a Customized Employment (CE) intervention adapted for SCI rehabilitation is more effective than the standard care (IPS) for helping Veterans with SCI obtain and maintain employment. METHODS: A 4-year, 2-site randomized clinical trial (RCT) with concurrent mixed methods using an intent-to-treat (ITT) approach. The primary outcome is competitive integrated employment as defined by the Work Innovation and Opportunity Act. Secondary outcomes are employment indicators, quality of life (QOL), and participation. RESULTS: This is a methods paper so there are no results to present at this time. CONCLUSION: The proportion of Veterans who attain employment will be greater for the CE group than the IPS group and they will outperform the IPS group on other employment-related metrics (e.g., higher job satisfaction, wages, and retention). Employed Veterans will demonstrate significant improvements in self-sufficiency, QOL, and participation. Qualitative data obtained from interviews will assist with adaptation strategies and will identify barriers to implementing CE.
{"title":"Achieving competitive, customized employment through specialized services for Veterans with spinal cord injuries (ACCESS-Vets): A randomized clinical trial protocol","authors":"Lisa Ottomanelli, T. Smith, B. Cotner, Peter A. Toyinbo, Hari H Venkatachalam, S. McDonald, L. Goetz, Julie Cessna-Palas, S. Mendelson, Christina Dillahunt-Aspillaga, Areana Cruz, Liron S McCauley, Bradford S Pierce","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230016","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: To date, the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model is the only vocational intervention that has been rigorously studied and shown to be effective with Veterans with spinal cord injury (SCI). Customized Employment (CE) is an innovative vocational intervention with promising results among people with disabilities which has yet to be tested in persons with SCI. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether a Customized Employment (CE) intervention adapted for SCI rehabilitation is more effective than the standard care (IPS) for helping Veterans with SCI obtain and maintain employment. METHODS: A 4-year, 2-site randomized clinical trial (RCT) with concurrent mixed methods using an intent-to-treat (ITT) approach. The primary outcome is competitive integrated employment as defined by the Work Innovation and Opportunity Act. Secondary outcomes are employment indicators, quality of life (QOL), and participation. RESULTS: This is a methods paper so there are no results to present at this time. CONCLUSION: The proportion of Veterans who attain employment will be greater for the CE group than the IPS group and they will outperform the IPS group on other employment-related metrics (e.g., higher job satisfaction, wages, and retention). Employed Veterans will demonstrate significant improvements in self-sufficiency, QOL, and participation. Qualitative data obtained from interviews will assist with adaptation strategies and will identify barriers to implementing CE.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"37 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85449071","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
BACKGROUND: Passage of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) of 2014 placed an emphasis on increasing student education and preparation for employment for students as young as 14. When Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) was awarded a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) to establish a Rehabilitation and Research Training Center (RRTC) on employment for transition-age youth with disabilities, one of the studies focused on knowledge translation methods to develop and deliver a toolkit to assist VR counselors (and others) providing pre-employment transition services (Pre-ETS) to students 14 to 16 years of age with significant disabilities. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this practice brief is to share preliminary findings from Phase 1 and Phase 2 of VCU-RRTC on Employment of Transition-Age Youth with Disabilities’ study, Effects of Knowledge Translation Methods on Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors Providing Pre-ETS to Youth with Significant Disabilities 14–16 years of age. METHOD: To prepare this practice brief, program staff conducted a thematic analysis of interview findings from Phase 1 and reviewed program materials from Phase 2 to identify preliminary observations. Program materials included instructor case notes, student reports, student pre- and post-tests, interviews with families, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and school staff after instruction. RESULTS: From Phase 1, VR counselors, educators, and families desired early exposure to career exploration and felt that interest-driven experiences and education was generally lacking. From Phase 2, it was observed that lesson content needed to be relevant and engaging to younger students, who often had a very abstract understanding of work and limited self-awareness about career interests and personal interests and strengths. CONCLUSION: Preliminary findings from Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the study underscore the desire and need to increase collaboration between educators, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and families. Observations from Phase 2 demonstrate the value of Pre-ETS instruction to younger students with significant disabilities, and how increased collaboration can prepare students for employment through early career exploration, workplace readiness skills, and community based work experiences.
{"title":"Preliminary data from effects of knowledge translation methods on VR counselors providing pre-ETS to youth with significant disabilities: A brief report","authors":"Stephanie Lau, S. McKelvey","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230012","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: Passage of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) of 2014 placed an emphasis on increasing student education and preparation for employment for students as young as 14. When Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) was awarded a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) to establish a Rehabilitation and Research Training Center (RRTC) on employment for transition-age youth with disabilities, one of the studies focused on knowledge translation methods to develop and deliver a toolkit to assist VR counselors (and others) providing pre-employment transition services (Pre-ETS) to students 14 to 16 years of age with significant disabilities. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this practice brief is to share preliminary findings from Phase 1 and Phase 2 of VCU-RRTC on Employment of Transition-Age Youth with Disabilities’ study, Effects of Knowledge Translation Methods on Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors Providing Pre-ETS to Youth with Significant Disabilities 14–16 years of age. METHOD: To prepare this practice brief, program staff conducted a thematic analysis of interview findings from Phase 1 and reviewed program materials from Phase 2 to identify preliminary observations. Program materials included instructor case notes, student reports, student pre- and post-tests, interviews with families, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and school staff after instruction. RESULTS: From Phase 1, VR counselors, educators, and families desired early exposure to career exploration and felt that interest-driven experiences and education was generally lacking. From Phase 2, it was observed that lesson content needed to be relevant and engaging to younger students, who often had a very abstract understanding of work and limited self-awareness about career interests and personal interests and strengths. CONCLUSION: Preliminary findings from Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the study underscore the desire and need to increase collaboration between educators, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and families. Observations from Phase 2 demonstrate the value of Pre-ETS instruction to younger students with significant disabilities, and how increased collaboration can prepare students for employment through early career exploration, workplace readiness skills, and community based work experiences.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"2088 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-04-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91334514","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
BACKGROUND: Despite an increase in supported employment, a large and growing number people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) still participate in non-work day services. Quality day services that lead to community life engagement (CLE) play an important role in both leading to and complementing competitive integrated employment. OBJECTIVE: Building off guideposts developed in previous research, we aimed to develop and test a new instrument, the CLE Fidelity Scale, for service providers to assess whether their day services and supports are well-designed to support CLE. METHODS: The research involved four steps: item generation based on existing instruments, a self-advocate review panel and Delphi panel for content adequacy assessment, piloting the instrument with service providers, and internal consistency assessment and factor analysis of the pilot data. RESULTS: The end product of these four activities was an 18-item CLEFS that loaded onto three components. The CLEFS also displayed strong content validity (CVR over 0.5 for all items) and interrater reliability (average α=.837), CONCLUSION: The CLEFS can be a useful tool for service providers and state agencies seeking to assess and improve day services and supports.
{"title":"Development of a community life engagement fidelity scale to assess and improve day services and supports","authors":"J. Sulewski, Oliver Lyons, Ngai Kwan","doi":"10.3233/jvr-230014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-230014","url":null,"abstract":"BACKGROUND: Despite an increase in supported employment, a large and growing number people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) still participate in non-work day services. Quality day services that lead to community life engagement (CLE) play an important role in both leading to and complementing competitive integrated employment. OBJECTIVE: Building off guideposts developed in previous research, we aimed to develop and test a new instrument, the CLE Fidelity Scale, for service providers to assess whether their day services and supports are well-designed to support CLE. METHODS: The research involved four steps: item generation based on existing instruments, a self-advocate review panel and Delphi panel for content adequacy assessment, piloting the instrument with service providers, and internal consistency assessment and factor analysis of the pilot data. RESULTS: The end product of these four activities was an 18-item CLEFS that loaded onto three components. The CLEFS also displayed strong content validity (CVR over 0.5 for all items) and interrater reliability (average α=.837), CONCLUSION: The CLEFS can be a useful tool for service providers and state agencies seeking to assess and improve day services and supports.","PeriodicalId":47208,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation","volume":"127 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2023-04-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89205883","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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